A Fateful Day
by Phoebe F
Summary: Believe it or not, Kaori and Kousei have met before at a talent show. That day impacted their fates forever.


A Fateful Day

Unlike most other kids, I am not looking forward to the talent show at school today. Sure, you don't to go to most of your classes, but it's useless. What nine year old do you know that's incredibly talented? That's right, none. And yes, I know that I am a piano prodigy, but because of the talent show's absurdity I am not going to be in it. The only part of the show that might not bore me is if someone happens to be playing an instrument. When I arrived at school, the hallways were buzzing with gossip of who was performing and what their talent was. Ugh. I then came up with a fabulous idea. Instead of attending the talent show, I could just hide in the music room and practice piano. However, interesting news reached my ears. A very talented violinist would be performing today, but I didn't know the name. I decided it would be worth it to attend the show to hear them play.

At last, the talent show began. I sat through countless acts that practically made me fall asleep. This person better be worth it. Finally, it was time. It turns out that it was Kaori Miyazono and she would be playing Hikaru Nara. I am sure it was not just me who was captivated by her beautiful playing. The whole audience seemed entranced. When she played the last note, applause immediately broke out. Some of her friends gave her a standing ovation, and before long, everyone participated. Now that her act was over, I could go down and play piano. Hikaru Nara stayed in my head for days, and I later realized why; she had not played it as it was originally written. Instead, she put her own twist on it, which made the song all the more memorable.

I decided to play the song on the piano for my mother when I got home. I knew that she wanted music to be played the way the composer meant it to be, but I was certain that once she heard it with Kaori's twist, she would change her mind. When I went to my next class, I was so focused on the song that I barely heard what my teacher was saying. In fact, when she called on me to answer a question, I didn't know she was talking to me until everyone was staring. I was extremely embarrassed, but what made it worse is that she accused me of purposely ignoring her and had me stay after school to clean the classroom. That was an hour of my time that could have been spent visiting my hospitalized mother and playing piano for her. After all, it was her dream for me to travel to Europe and show off my talent.

About halfway through my sentence, my teacher's phone rang. I thought nothing of it, for she was most likely gloating to everyone about how she was able to torture to me. However, as she was listening to what the voice was saying, she turned pale. After she hung up, she said you can go now. For a second I was thrilled, after all, I was no longer stuck after school. But my joy didn't last long. She grimly told me that my mother had just passed away and that a close friend of hers was coming to pick me up. I was overwhelmed with grief. If I hadn't attended the talent show, I wouldn't have constantly been thinking of Kaori and Hikaru Nara, and if I wasn't so distracted, I wouldn't have had detention, and I haven't had detention, I could have been with my mother when she died.

The next few days passed in a blur. I was now considered old enough to live by myself. However, one shocking event occurred. When I was standing in line for lunch about a week after the accident, Kaori came up to me and invited me to be her accompanist at a recital she was going to be playing at in about a week. I surprisingly refused. Ever since my mother's death, I refused to play piano, for it was that that kept me from being with her when she died. Kaori was incredibly disappointed, but I just couldn't say yes. If I had, I probably would have been overwhelmed with grief and guilt. It would have been useless to say yes because I am not able to hear the notes that I play. About a month later, Kaori moved away.

I am remembering my encounters with Kaori now, after her death. As a way to cope with despair, I was told to try to recall all of my memories of her. Suddenly, these long lost events popped into my head. I now realize that she must have moved back to town later. She might have even recognized me when we met again but not said anything. All things considered, I am not sure she even remembered me or recalled who I was when we saw each other for the first time in years, but I do know a few things; Kaori Miyazono has impacted the rest of my life, was a truly incredible and inspiring person, and finally, she taught me that the light can reach even the bottom of a dark ocean.


End file.
